Chairman’s Review
Unit Trust Corporation
Annual Report 2012
28
Funds Under Management
By the end of 2012, the Corporation’s
funds under management grew to $22.06
billion, up 2.95% from TT$21.43 billion in
2011. The Universal Retirement Fund grew
13.8% to reach TT$212.7 million while the
flagship Growth and Income fund added
TT$379.2 million to reach TT$3.68 billion,
up 11.50%. Another UTC behemoth, the TT
Dollar Income Fund, increased 5.7% or TT$
595 million to TT$11.15 billion. High system
liquidity coupled with domestic investment
opportunities that were few and far in
between, resulted in a stable return of 1.33%
throughout the year for the TT Dollar Income
Fund. With the exception of the Energy and
Asia Pacific Fund, the international suite of
Funds and the US Dollar Income Fund also
grew in 2012.
The Universal Retirement Fund was the
best performer in 2012, with a net return to
unitholders of 8.31%. The European Fund
and Asia Pacific Fund followed with returns
of 8.12% and 6.91% respectively.
Outlook 2013
Global growth is projected to be slow in
2013, led by the developed nations. Europe
will remain a source of concern for the global
economy given its elevated debt levels, rising
unemployment rate and the negative impact
of austerity measures on consumption.
Growth prospects in the US will also be
tempered, as higher taxation rates and the
effects of the automatic spending cuts weigh
on the level of expenditure. With the majority
of the Caribbean tourists coming from the
European nations, growth prospects for
tourism-dependent economies will also
be tempered.
The Trinidad and Tobago economy is on
the cusp of a turnaround with forecasted
growth of 2.5% in 2013 from 1.2% in 2012.
Once the initiatives taken to revive the local
energy sector bear fruit and expenditure on
the country’s infrastructure resumes we can
expect positive growth going forward. Such
projects are likely to increase investment
opportunities that would redound to the
benefit of unit holders.
Economic uncertainty and volatility are
expected to be the overriding themes
for 2013, as the concern of the economic
strength of Europe, the US debt ceiling
decision and the moderation of Emerging
Markets still prevail. Such volatility will
be a challenge for investors worldwide.
These prevailing conditions determine
the cautionary mode the UTC will adopt
in managing your investments in the
immediate future. The Unit Trust Corporation
of Trinidad & Tobago is poised to weather
such global headwinds with our strong
risk management framework and focus on
stability and excellent performance.
